Kishida the successor to Suga in Japan
INCOMING LEADER SPELLS OUT PLAN TO RESTORE PUBLIC TRUST IN PARTY
Fumio Kishida, Japan’s former foreign minister, who is set to become the country’s new prime minister after winning his party’s leadership vote yesterday, has vowed to counter China’s growing influence and redistribute the nation’s wealth to close the income gap.
Kishida, 64, will become prime minister on Monday following a special parliamentary session, replacing Yoshihide Suga, who decided to step down after just one year in power amid plummeting popularity over his handling of Japan’s coronavirus response.
Ex-foreign minister
The selection of Kishida, who served as foreign minister for many years under former prime minister Shinzo Abe, ensures a stable transition of power. After running in an unusually wideopen race that surfaced frustrations within younger members of the party, Kishida said he would listen to feedback and work to restore public trust for a “rebirth” of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party.
“I heard that many were saying that their voices weren’t heard by the government and that they couldn’t trust the government,” Kishida said yesterday.
Among Kishida’s banner platforms is decreasing the income gap, through redistributing wealth and reining in the market-oriented policies that were the core of Abe’s economic agenda. As he succeeds Suga, Kishida faces challenges navigating the country’s pandemic response and jump-starting its stagnant economic recovery.
But his first order of business will be preparing to fight a general election before the end of November. The LDP is expected to win, which would reaffirm Kishida’s ascent as PM.